Methods for preparing ready-to-dispense beverages, like tea beverages, are known. For example, many food establishments have brewing systems that dispense tea-based beverages ready for consumption. Typically, such systems operate by mixing an instant tea or a brewed tea concentrate with hot water to produce a hot water composition that is combined with cold water to thereby produce a tea beverage that is ready to drink.
Unfortunately, however, when preparing beverages, like tea beverages, from a beverage precursor in the manner described above, the beverages often have, for example, flavor and aroma characteristics that do not meet desired consumer expectations, especially when the beverage precursor employed has aged. This is true because beverage enhancing components, like flavor- and aroma-generating compounds found in beverage precursors, typically degrade within the beverage precursor, a direct result of their unstable nature in the presence of conventional beverage precursor components.
In view of the above, typical ready-to-drink tea dispensing machines, for example, have been modified to post dose flavor and aroma compounds. Such tea dispensing machines can be energy inefficient, difficult to refill and often noisy since they require a first pump to deliver beverage precursor and a second pump to deliver the flavor and aroma compounds.
It is of increasing interest to develop a beverage dispensing machine that comprises a delivery means for efficiently delivering a beverage enhancing component (not formulated within a beverage precursor) to a beverage precursor at a point prior to dispensing a beverage. This invention, therefore, is directed to a beverage dispensing machine comprising a delivery means suitable to deliver a beverage enhancing component, whereby the beverage enhancing component is delivered with an eductor within the delivery means. Such an apparatus unexpectedly produces a beverage of superior flavor and aroma while at the same time being lighter, easier to refill, quieter and more energy efficient than conventional machines. The beverage dispensing machine of this invention delivers beverage precursor and beverage enhancing component with a single pump and eductor.
Additional Information
Efforts have been disclosed for making beverages. In U.S. Pat. No. 6,413,570, a brewed tea concentrate suitable for making a tea beverage is described.
Other efforts have been disclosed for dispensing beverages. In U.S. Pat. No. 6,135,009, a beverage brewing system on a serving cart assembly is described.
Even other efforts have been disclosed for dispensing beverages. In World Application WO 01/65985, a brewing device having automatic and semi-automatic brewing modes is described.
Still other efforts have been disclosed for dispensing beverages. In commonly assigned U.S. application Ser. No. 10/897,747, a beverage dispensing machine that uses negative pressure to deliver beverage product precursors is described.
None of the additional information above describes a beverage dispensing machine comprising a delivery means suitable to deliver (via an eductor) a beverage enhancing component within the beverage dispensing machine whereby the same only requires a single pump for pumping or delivering beverage precursor.